Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to investigate reports of possible instances of birth tourism schemes at hospitals.
“Birth tourism is an illegal practice that exploits the extraordinary hospitality that the United States and Texas offer to millions of foreign travelers each year,” Abbott said in a statement. “Thousands of foreign travelers come to the United States under false pretenses to give birth and secure citizenship for their children. HHSC must investigate the hospital, a facility it regulates, for any violations of state law and contractual obligations.”
Under the directive, the HHSC must send violations to the Attorney General for enforcement and prosecution. “Any violations will immediately be referred to the Attorney General for civil enforcement and to the appropriate District or County Attorney for criminal prosecution,” his letter to HHSC Commissioner Stephanie Muth says. “Additionally, HHSC shall take appropriate administrative actions against Mission Regional Medical Center, including, but not limited to, assessing sanctions and penalties.”
“American citizenship is not for sale and Texas will not permit our healthcare system to be used as a magnet for birth tourism,” Abbott wrote. “I will also work with the Texas Legislature next session to strengthen state law and eliminate birth tourism in Texas.”
Earlier this year, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against a Houston-area “birth tourism” scheme that is allegedly responsible for more than a thousand American-born babies.
The lawsuit states that tourist visas cannot be issued for the purpose of giving birth. “This is an unlawful scheme that perpetuates fraud on the government and violates Texas law. And Defendants know this,” the filing reads. “Indeed, just last week, Defendants posted a video to TikTok acknowledging that the federal government is ‘strictly’ policing birth tourism and alerting Chinese women that ‘applying after pregnancy can easily lead to [] refusal.’”
